Guard for nail clipper



Feb. 16, 1965 c. H. FlNK 3,169,312

GUARD FOR NAIL. CLIPPER Filed March 25, 1963 Charles H. Fink INVENTOK.

Mug 3% United States Patent The present invention is concerned with newand useful improvements in nail clippers, and is more specificallydirected toward a novel guard mountable on conventional nail clippers soas to assist in the collection of cut nails.

While it is appreciated that several different types of nail clipperguards have been devised, such known guards generally contain one ormore undesirable features, such as for example, requiring that the guardbe mounted during either the actual construction or assembly of the nailclipper, requiring a substantial modification of the clipper structure,being ineifective as a means for collecting all of the clipped nails,and being difiicult to empty.

Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present vention to provide anail clipper guard which avoids of the above set forth objectionablefeatures.

In line with the above object, it is intended that the guard of thepresent invention be mountable upon a conventional nail clipper withoutinterfering with the normal operation of either the nail clippingportion of the pivotally mounted file normally provided thereon.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a nail guardwhich can be quickly installed on a completely assembled nail clipper.

Furthermore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a nailguard which, while generally simple in construction and capable ofeconomical manufacture, provides an eirective means for retaining cutfingernails until such time as one desires to dispose of these cutfingernails.

Additionally, it is an object of the present invention to provide anovelly shaped blank from which the guard can be formed by making onlyfour bends.

Basically, the guard of the instant invention, formed from the abovenoted blank, consists of two spaced side panels interconnected by a flatbottom panel, these side panels being positionable along opposite sidesof the space formed between the slightly diverging jaw members of aconventional nail clipper, the bottom panel engaging against the lowersurface of the lower jaw with the enlarged head of the clipper pivot pinbeing received within a circular notch in the bottom panel. The guard ispivotally mounted for movement between an upper position enclosing thespace between the jaws and a lower position below the lower jaw by meansof a pair or" inwardly directed bendable lugs which also function so asto enclose the rear portion of the nail receiving chamber formed by theguard. Likewise inwardly projecting de tents are provided on each panelfor releasable locking engagement with the lover jaw in a manner so asto retain the guard in its upper or enclosing position, while at thesame time allowing the guard to be quickly snapped open for an emptyingof the chamber.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomesubsequently apparent reside in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawin s forming a part hereof, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a top plan view of a conventional nail clipper having thegurd of the present invention mounted thereon;

FIGURE 2 is a side elevational view of the clipper with the guardmounted thereon;

FIGURE 3 is a partial cross-sectional view taken substantially on aplane passing alon line 33 in FIG- URE 2;

FEGURE 4 is a partial cross-sectional view taken subinall ice stantiallyon a plane passing along line 4-4 in FIG- URE 1;

HGURE 5 is a partial perspective view of the forward end of the clipperwith the guard lowered for a removal of the cut nails;

FEGURE 6 is a perspective view of the guard removed from the clipper;

FIGURE 7 is a plan view of the blank from which the guard is formed; and

FIGURE 8 is a partial top plan view of a toenail clipper having angledcutting edges with a modified form of the guard thereon having one sidepanel of a greater length than the other side panel so as to insure acomplete enclosing of the nail-receiving chamber.

Referring now more specifically to the drawings, reference numeral 1%generally indicates a conventional nail clipper including coextensiveupper and lower resilient jaw members 12 and 14, these jaw membershaving the rear portions thereof rigidly fixed together as indicated byreference numeral 15. Aside from the secured rear end portions, the jawmembers 12 and 14 are flexibly biased apart in forwardly divergingrelation to each other. The forward end of each of the jaw members 12and 14 termimates in inwardly directed cutting edges 18, these cuttingedges, in addition to extending inwardly toward each other, also extendslightly forward and are transversely concave. The cutting movement ofthe jaw members 12 and l is effected by means of a cam lever 20 havingthe forward end thereof engaged within a recess 22 provided within thepivot pin which extends through aligned apertures slightly behind thecutting edges 18, this pin a having an enlarged head 26 which abuts thelower surface of the lower jaw member 14. Finally, this nail clipper itis provided with a file bar 23 which is pivotally mounted to therearward ends of the jaw members 12 and 14 by an eyelet 3b.

The guard comprising the present invention is generally referred to byreference numeral 32, and is utilized to provide an enclosed chamber, inconjunction with portions of the upper and lower jaw members 12 and 14,for the retention of severed fingernail portions until such time as onedesires to dispose of these fingernail portions. Accordingly, the guard32, consists of two side plates 34 positionable on opposite sides of thejaw members l2 and 14 from approximately the forward ends of the jawmembers 12 and 14 to a longitudinally spaced point rearwardly thereof.The side panels 3 8 are of a size so as to substantially completelyclose the space provided between the upper and lower jaw members 12 andlid throughout the entire extent of the guard 32, these side panels 34tapering from a larger forward end to a reduced rearward end, if sodesired, so as to conform to the divergence of the jaw members 12 and14.

The side panels 34 are maintained in spaced parallel relationship by thebottom panel 36, this spacing of the side panels 34 being substantiallyequal to the width of the jaw members 12 and 14- whereby movement of thejaw members between the side panels 34 can be effected.

In order to mount the guard 32 on the nail clipper l0, rearwardlyprojecting lugs 38 are provided, one integral with each side panel 34,these lugs being bent inwardly at approximately right angles to the sidepanels 34 between the upper and lower jaw members 12 and 14 thus, inaddition to providing a means for pivotally mounting the guard, alsoproviding an additional barrier for retaining the cut nails within theenclosed space.

Aside from the inwardly bent lugs 38, the guard 32 is retained in itsenclosing position by means of at least one pair of inwardly directeddetents 40 adjacent the forward ends of the side panels 34 and extendinginwarcfly a sufiicient distance so as to engage the upper eneasraclosed. If so desired, additional detents 42 can beprovided, howevenitis contemplated that a sing'le pair of detents it? be sufficient forretaining the guard in'its closed position as illustrated in FEGURES1-4. These detents iii, as well as any other detents, are positionedupwardly from the bottom panel 36 a distance approximately equivalent tothe thickness of the lower jaw member 14 whereby, in its closedposition, the guard is orientated with the lower jaw member 14 betweenthe detents 4t and the bottom panel 36. and closing of the guard 32, itwill be appreciated that a slight outward flexing of the side panels 34is necessary.

Turning now to the specific configuration of the forward edge of theguard 32, it will be noted that the bottom panel 36 is provided with acentrally located arcuate recess 44- therein, this recess conforminggenerally to the pivot pin head 26 whereby upon. a closing of the guard32 the arcuate recess 44 snugly receives this head 26. If so desired, inorder to additionally secure the guard 52, the lower jaw member 14 canbe forced upwardly slightly away from the head thus allowing for aslight fo ward sliding of the guard so as to engage the recess 44 aboutthe shank of the pin 24 with a release of the lower jaw member 14resulting in a clamping of the portion of the bottom panel between thehead 26 and the lower jaw member 14. In regard to this feature, it willbe readily appreciated that the engagement and disengagement of theforward edge of the bottom panel 36 between the head 26 and the lowerjaw member 14 can be quickly and simply accomplished by a mere flick ofa finger.

Returning again to the front edge of the guard 32, it will be noted thatthe front edge of the bottom panel 36 diverges outwardly from oppositeends of the arcuate recess 44, these diverging portions as beingprovided so as to avoid any interference by the guard 32 with the normalpositioning of the finger during the clipping of the nail. In order tofurther avoid any interference between the guard 32 and a finger duringa clipping of the nail, it will be noted that the forward edge 48 ofeach of the side panels 34 is generally convex in shape so as tosubstantially conform to the orientation of the cutting edges 18 thusalso achieving an eifective sealing of the nail-receiving space. Itshould alsobe noted that the rear edge of each of the side panels 34- isalso convex with the lugs 38 projecting centrally therefrom, these rearconvex edges being referred to by reference numeral 50.

The blank from which the guard 32 is formed is illustrated in FIGURE 7,the formation of the guard only requiring four bends, the first twobends being along the side panel bend lines 52, and the second two bendsbeing along the lug bend lines 5 5.

FIGURE 8 is intended to illustrate a slightly modified form of guardwherein one side panel 5-15 is slightly longer than the other side panel58 thereby adapting this modified guard for use with a toenail clipperof the type having straight angled cutting edges 64 In order to achievethe opening- From the foregoing, the construction and manner of use ofthe guard 32 is considered'to be readily apparent. The side panels 34-are first bent upwardly out of the plane of the blank after which thelugs 33 are bent inwardly towards each other, this inward bending of thelugs being easily accomplishedso as to embrace "the lower jaw member 14on the assembled nail clipper it thus securing the guard to the clipper.However, if so desired, it will be appreciated that the guard can becompletely formed and subsequently mounted on the nail clipper 10 by adisassembly thereof. After the guard 32 has been mounted on the clipper1d, the side panels 34 are swung upwardly so as to be positioned inoverlapping relationship to the central space in the vicinity of andslightly forward and rearward of the pivot pin 24 with the guard beingretained in this enclosing position by the detents dd in cooperationwith the lugs 38. Once in this position, with reference to'FIGURE 5, itwill be recognized that the lugs 38 extend upwardly from the lower jawmemberld toa point spaced from the upper jaw member 12 only a sufiicientdistance so as to accommodate the movement of the jaws toward eachother.

' The bottom panel as, at the same time, can be positioned either withthe enlarged pin head if; nested within the recess 44 or with theforward edge of the bottom panel 36 being clamped between the head 26and the lower jaw member 14. In regard to this recess 44, it iscontemplated that such conform to the pin head 25 and the slightlygreater than a half circle so as to tend to lock the pin head .26therein thus restricting longitudinal movement. After one has finishedclipping his nails, all of the nails being effectively retained withinthe nailreceiving chamber formed by the upper and lower jaw members 12and 14-, the side panels 34, and the rear lugs 35, the guard 32 ispivoted downwardly about the lugs 38, first disengaging the forward edgeof the bottom panel 35 either from the pin head 25 or from b tween thehead as and lower jaw member 14, as necessary. Upon a downward pivotingof the guard 32, the nail-receiving chamber is exposed on both sidesthereof thus enabling an emptying of the chamber of all of the nails atone time. I

In conclusion, it should also be noted that this guard in no wayinterferes with the normal operation of any portion of the nail clipperincluding both the activation of the cutting edges and the use of thepivotally mounted file.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles ofthe invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes willreadily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limitthe invention to the exact construction and operation shown anddescribed, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalentsmay be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention asclaimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. For mounting on a nail clipper having coextensive upper and lowerresilient jaw members secured at one end and flexibly biased apart forthe remainder of their length, cooperating inwardly directed cuttingedges on the free ends of the jaw members, a pivot pin through alignedopenings in said jaws, and a cam lever for effecting a closing of thejaw members for the severance of a portion of a nail positioned betweenthe cutting edges; a nail guard for retaining the cut nails within thespace between the jaw members rearward of the cutting edges, said guardincluding two spaced side panels, a bottom panel connecting said sidepanels and spacing them from each other a distance substantially equalto the width of the jaw members in the vicinity of the pivot pin,inwardly extending detents on said side panels, the distance between theplanes of the inner ends of the detents being slightly less than theaforementioned jaw member width, said detents being spaced above thebottom panel a distance so as to accommodate the thickness of the lowerjaw member, said guard possessing sufficient flexibility so as to enablea slight outward flexing of the side panels suiiicient to allow thepositioning of the lower jaw member between the detents and the bottompanel, and means for pivo-tally mounting said guard on the nail clipperfor movement between a first position wherein said side panels arepositioned on opposite sides of the space between the jaw members so asto enclose this space, and a second position wherein said guard isorientated below the lower jaw so as to open the space between the jaws,said means for pivotally mounting said guard consisting of a lugintegral with the rearward edge of each side panel, said lugs beingbendable so as to extend inwardly toward each other thereby enabling amounting of the guard on an assembled nail clipper and providing'abarrier for retaining the cut nails within the enclosed space.

2. The structure of claim 1 wherein the forward edge of the bottom panelhas an arcuate recess centrally 1ocated therein of a size so as tosnugly receive that portion of the pivot pin normally projecting belowthe lower jaw member.

3. The structure or" claim 2 wherein the forward edge of the bottompanel, from the opposite ends or" the areuate recess, consist of twooutwardly diverging portions, each terminating at the forward edge ofone of the side panels, the forward edge of each side panel being shapedso as to generally follow the curvature of the cutting edges.

4. For mounting on a nail clipper having coextensive upper and lowerresilient jaw members secured at one end and flexibly biased apart forthe remainder of their length, cooperating inwardly directed cuttingedges on the free end of the jaw members, a pivot pin through alignedopenings in said jaw, and means for effecting a closing of the jawmembers for the severance of a portion of a nail positioned between thecutting edges; a nail guard for retaining the cut nails within the spacebetween the jaw members rearward of the cutting edges, said guardincluding two spaced side panels, a bottom panel connecting said sidepanels and spacing them from each other a distance substantially equalto the width of the jaw members in the vicinity of the pivot pin, a lugintegral with the rearward edge of each side panel, said lugs beingbendable so as to extend inwardly toward each other between the jawmembers thereby enabling a mounting of the guard on an assembled nailclipper and providing a barrier for retaining the cut nails within thespace between the side panels, said lugs pivotally mounting the guard onthe nail clipper for movement between a first position wherein said sidepanels are positioned on opposite sides of the space between the jawmembers so as to enclose the space, and a second position wherein saidguard is orientated below the lower jaw so as to open the space betweenthe jaws, and means for releasably retaining the guard in the firstposition.

References ited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,146,132 2/39Scholl -28 2,837,821 6/58 David 30-124 2,970,376 2/61 Chi Shcng Kuo30-28 2,985,957 5/61 Freedman 30-124 2,995,820 8/61 Pocoski 30-283,013,334 12/61 Bassett 30-28 WILLIAM FELDMAN, Primary Examiner.

1. FOR MOUNTING ON A NAIL CLIPPER HAVING COEXTENSIVE UPPER AND LOWERRESILIENT JAW MEMBERS SECURED AT ONE END AND FLEXIBLY BIASED APART FORTHE REMAINDER OF THEIR LENGTH, COOPERATING INWARDLY DIRECTED CUTTINGEDGES ON THE FREE ENDS OF THE JAW MEMBERS, A PIVOT PIN THROUGH ALIGNEDOPENINGS IN SAID JAWS, AND A CAM LEVER FOR EFFECTING A CLOSING OF THEJAW MEMBERS FOR THE SEVERANCE OF A PORTION OF A NAIL POSITIONED BETWEENTHE CUTTING EDGES; A NAIL GUARD FOR RETAINING THE CUT NAILS WITHIN THESPACE BETWEEN THE JAW MEMBERS REARWARD OF THE CUTTING EDGES, SAID GUARDINCLUDING TWO SPACED SIDE PANELS, A BOTTOM PANEL CONNECTING SAID SIDEPANELS AND SPACING THEM FROM EACH OTHER OF DISTANCE SUBSTANTIALLY EQUALTO THE WIDTH OF THE JAW MEMBERS IN THE VICINITY OF THE PIVOT PIN,INWARDLY EXTENDING DETENTS ON SAID SIDE PANELS, THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THEPLANES OF THE INNER ENDS OF THE DETENTS BEING SLIGHTLY LESS THAN THEAFOREMENTIONED JAW MEMBER WIDTH, SAID DETENTS BEING SPACED ABOVE THEBOTTOM PANEL A DISTANCE SO AS TO ACCOMMODATE THE THICKNESS OF THE LOWERJAW MEMBER, SAID GUARD POSSESSING SUFFICIENT FLEXIBILITY SO AS TO ENABLEA SLIGHT OUTWARD FLEXING OF THE SIDE PANELS SUFFICIENT TO ALLOW THEPOSITIONING OF THE LOWER JAW MEMBER BETWEEN THE DETENTS AND THE BOTTOMPANEL, AND MEANS FOR PIVOTALLY MOUNTING SAID GUARD ON THE NAIL CLIPPERFOR MOVEMENT BETWEEN A FIRST POSITION WHEREIN SAID SIDE PANELS AREPOSITIONED ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE SPACE BETWEEN THE JAW MEMBERS SO ASTO ENCLOSE THIS SPACE, AND A SECOND POSITION WHEREIN SAID GUARD ISORIENTATED BELOW THE LOWER JAW SO AS TO OPEN THE SPACE BETWEEN THE JAWS,SAID MEANS FOR PIVOTALLY MOUNTING SAID GUARD CONSISTING OF A LUGINTEGRAL WITH THE REARWARD EDGE OF EACH SIDE PANEL, SAID LUGS BEINGBENDABLE SO AS TO EXTEND INWARDLY TOWARD EACH OTHER THEREBY ENABLING AMOUNTING OF THE GUARD ON AN ASSEMBLED NAIL CLIPPER AND PROVIDING ABARRIER FOR RETAINING THE CUT NAILS WITHIN THE ENCLOSED SPACE.